Food for Thought Thursday-Words of Advice for Your Travels in Life

I don’t consider myself to be travel-savvy. After all, I’ve only been on three international tripsand I completely missed the “spring-break in Mexico” memo. I don’t speak foreign languages and I stick out like a sore thumb in general as a 5’11’ tall woman that wears heels, and as a person so pale, it took me years to color-match the right foundation. But as this is post is being broadcast for the internet to read, I will be cruising on the coasts of Alaska so I figured this is as good a time as any to share one of my most bizarre vacation stories. Happy summer vacationing!!:

During a backpacking trip to Europe, my cousin and I wanted to make the most of our 14 days. We chose to visit eight countries and jam-packed the essentials. We obviously needed light, sturdy, and versatile shoes. I chose strappy sandals and one pair of boots. Fashion boots, that is. As you might guess, I had never been backpacking before, I wanted to look cute in pictures, and I needed style on my side to find a European lover.

                                
































Of course, I never considered that rain would relentlessly followed us to every single country.  Only five days in and we found ourselves feeling more defeated in Austria than excited at the amazing culture we were temporarily immersed in. I was cold, worn…and then something happened. BOTHof the soles of my boots disintegrated at the same time. My feet were completely exposed on thecobblestone road and I became certain that my toes would actually turn into prunes. 

                                 

































My only option was to trash the boots and walk in dirty, soaked socks. The thought that we had 4 miles of walking in a remote area until reaching the opera house had me ready to give up and go home. 

What occurred next was either the greatest miracle of my life or my cousin and I shared the same visual hallucination. A single, bright pink trolley car rolled up to us and three young ladies in bubblegum-colored dresses (speaking in perfect English) offered a free ride to our destination. After staring at each other in confusion, we hoped on. Not only were we taken to the epicenter of Vienna where we were headed, we did so while being served complimentary chocolate bars and hot cocoa.

The angels of Austria left without a trace and we never again saw a similar streetcar throughout the rest of Europe. Life lessons I learned:

1. Practicality ALWAYS supersedes fashion. You are how you feel, and if you feel like a wet dog, you probably look like one. 

2. The rainy days of life will make you second guess where you are and what you’re doing. The important thing is to keep walking, even if it’s with shoes off. Sure enough, your pink trolley is sure to come along. 

3. Chocolate never hurts, either.